


Never a Waste of Time

by Aloneindarknes7



Category: Wander Over Yonder
Genre: Angst, Episode Related, Established Relationship, Implied Relationships, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Long-Distance Relationship, Love Letters, M/M, Off-screen Relationship(s), Redemption, Waste of Time, skeleton dance - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-30
Updated: 2016-04-30
Packaged: 2018-06-05 09:11:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6698821
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aloneindarknes7/pseuds/Aloneindarknes7
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The episode "Waste of Time" from Hater's perspective. Or the one where Hater searches for his boyfriend and no one ends up happy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Never a Waste of Time

**Author's Note:**

> I love the Skeleton Dance community on Tumblr because I find the most wonderful ideas floating around. I saw a cute little headcanon that mentioned Wander leaving little notes and gifts on the ship every time he left. Then I saw someone post after the new episode 'Waste of Time' asking if Hater would be worried about Wander's sudden disappearance. For some reason, my brain combined the two. Then, just because I'm a twisted individual, I got stuck on that scene of Wander wanting to desperately save Hater but Sylvia holding him back. If you're looking for a happy fic, this isn't it. You've been forewarned.

The last note he ever found was under Wander’s pillow. It was written in crayon that Hater knew Wander got from his hat because there wasn’t a single crayon anywhere to be found on the Skullship. There was a poorly drawn image of Wander and Hater hugging with hearts of all sizes drawn around them. The note stated, “I know it seems bad right now, but we’ll be together again. Never forget that I love you and that I think about you when I’m gone! I’ll see you soon, Hatey! Love, Wander”

He found the last note. Hater didn’t know it was the last note though. He was still looking, still hoping to find more stashed somewhere on the ship that he hadn’t stumbled upon yet. If he did find more, then he knew that Wander had planned to be gone for that long.

Wander somehow always managed to hide just enough gifts or notes around the Skullship that Hater would find them all a few days before Wander returned. It was one of Wander’s special skills to plan his hiding spots so perfectly that Hater found them only when he was starting to really miss his boyfriend.

But Wander had never stayed away so long before. It had been the longest they’ve been apart since they started dating. The first year together had been tough since Hater’s insecurities had flared up every time Wander left him. But Wander had never stayed away for more than a week at a time. Their second year together had drastically changed Hater and he hadn’t even been concerned when Wander left for almost a month.

It was routine to Hater. He wasn’t worried. Wander left all the time. It was what he did. It was what made him Wander.

But it never stopped Hater from missing him.

The little gifts helped. It was a nice touch from his boyfriend. The notes were even better though. The thoughtfulness that went into each note allowed Hater to hear Wander’s voice in his head, even when Wander was lightyears away. Those notes brought Wander back to Hater for a split moment in time. If Hater had a particularly rough day, he’d re-read all the notes and they surprisingly helped make things better.

But nothing could be as good as having his little orange ball of sunshine actually with him. 

Hater had spent most of his life alone. Technically, he wasn’t alone; he always had Peepers and the Watchdogs. But he only stopped feeling alone when he started dating Wander. Even when Wander left him to go spread joy elsewhere, Hater didn’t feel so alone. He couldn’t, not when he would find signs of his boyfriend all over the Skullship to help remind him he wasn’t alone anymore.

When he would find a note written in the corner of his mirror saying “Smile, someone loves you!” Hater would always smile despite himself. When he found the little paper heart attached to the refrigerator with a magnet, he took it off and kept it in his pocket for a day. Two sandwiches were always left on his throne the morning after Wander left. One would be with mustard and the other with mayo. He had found a small little candy kiss left in his sock drawer. The signs of Wander were everywhere he did and didn’t expect to find them. 

Hater removed all the notes from their original spots and stored them in a box hidden on the top shelf in his closet. Not even Captain Tim could mess with them up there. He wanted to hoard them for himself and keep them safe.

He would continue to go about his usual routine. The little note on his weights that reminded Hater that “You really lift my spirits!” was a welcome break during his workout. He glared at the Watchdogs when they made cooing noises about the poem taped onto his planning station, but even the Watchdogs couldn’t stop the goofy grin from forming when he read it. 

Hater loved every little thing Wander left behind. They were great reminders of what would be returning to him.

But Wander had been gone for over seven weeks and Hater was feeling lonely. He missed Wander and he wanted him back. It was why he had buried his face in Wander’s pillow to try and imagine he was wrapped around the furry little guy. He had found the note and felt relieved at finding it. The note eased his worries. 

Except he couldn’t find any more notes after that; he had gotten desperate enough to have all the Watchdogs stop and search the Skullship to see if he had overlooked any. When his army of giant eyeballs confirmed that he had found all the notes and gifts, that’s when Hater began to worry.

He sent Watchdogs out to search for any signs of his boyfriend and report back. He offered rewards for any word on Wander or Sylvia. It became a full on mission after half a year. He stopped conquering planets and put all of his resources into finding Wander. Peepers was surprisingly supportive.

After a year, Peepers’ support started to turn more into comfort. Hater didn’t like finding pamphlets explaining the five stages of grief. Hater knew that space was dangerous, but he also knew that Wander wasn’t dead. Hater wasn’t sure how he knew, but he did. Wander wasn’t dead, but he was apparently not in the universe anymore.

When Peepers started to suggest that Hater give up the search and move on, Hater refused. Wander hadn’t given up on him and he wasn’t about to give up on Wander. Hater wouldn’t stop looking for Wander. He knew that Wander was meant to come back to him. 

He took to searching planets himself. He met a lot of trouble, of course with his past reputation that was to be expected, but he knew how to look after himself. Wander had taught him, after all. Hater was always hopeful that Wander would appear one day and help him.

He kept on hoping to see Wander once more. Even when he found himself on a small planet covered in slimy, green webs. He had been trying to help someone else because it was what Wander would have wanted him to do. The situation had left Hater’s control the moment the green webs weren’t affected by his powers. 

When his companion and himself found themselves stuck to the webs and staring into the face of their oncoming demise, Hater still found himself hoping that Wander would swoop in at the last second to save him.

He closed his eyes and thought of Wander. It was almost like he could hear Wander screaming his name at the end of it all.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sorry. Feel free to yell at me in the comments. I promise I'm working on a sequel to my happy Date fic.
> 
> Find me on Tumblr: http://aloneindarknes7.tumblr.com/


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